Boat Or Train Through Canal

Should we take the boat or train excursion through the Canal? We are on the Coral Princess 10/21....not a full transit. Please let me know your pros and cons on each. Thank you.

:)

We did the train excursion. Loved it1 Have recommended to several friends - they did it and loved it.

:)

We did the dome car train ride also. Although pricey, we felt it was worth it, and count it as the highlight of our cruise. We were glad we paid extra to be in the dome car, as the view was much better, and I was taking video. We were on the "Coral Princess" 12-9-03 cruise.

The boat trip through the locks is a very long, very hot day (its a rain forest near the equator, its always hot.) The train is air conditioned.

I agree, loved the train trip. It is air conditioned, there is commentary by a guide, and you get to visit the Miraflores locks visitors center by bus after getting off the train on the Pacific side.

I understand that the domed car has upper and lower sitting areas ... is the seating first come, first served? In other words, will everyone that purchased a dome car ticket be able to sit on the domed level? Thanks in advance

niblick, I was wondering the same thing. Does anyone have an answer? Thanks so .

We did the dome on 10/30/04. It is only one level. It is higher than the rest of the train, which does not have a dome. You sit at tables for 4, much like a dining car. The view is great. I would think much better than the view from the regular cars.

So we are doing the canal by ferry. any info or past cruisers done this??

hi

I will echo above comments. We just returned last Thurs night from the ten day Rotterdam cruise. We did the Panama Canal Railway and at $114 each for the non dome car, we got our money's worth. The dome cars were sold out even before the cruise began. Don't think we missed much tho. They even provided us with free water and a free lunch.

maril

if I was told that I would be riding the panama jungle in a wonderfull train ............... believe me the train is the best

We've taken both excursions and while both are excellent I would recommend the boat or ferry excursion thru the Canal first. The train ride is more comfortable but going the length of the Canal by water gives you a real close up view of the activities along the way.

We were fortunate to be shadowed by a freighter behind us in our "lane" and a freighter in the parallel "lane" as well. There's nothing quite like having your lock lowered with the ship in the other lane still floating 30' higher above you! For a general view of the Canal and countryside the train is the way to go. For a closeup of the Canal definitely take the boat or ferry excursion.

We've taken both excursions and while both are excellent I would recommend the boat or ferry excursion thru the Canal first. The train ride is more comfortable but going the length of the Canal by water gives you a real close up view of the activities along the way.

 

We were fortunate to be shadowed by a freighter behind us in our "lane" and a freighter in the parallel "lane" as well. There's nothing quite like having your lock lowered with the ship in the other lane still floating 30' higher above you! For a general view of the Canal and countryside the train is the way to go. For a closeup of the Canal definitely take the boat or ferry excursion.

How big is the boat through the canal? I have a couple of younger children that will not tolerate sitting for >6 straight hours.

We did the locks by ferry in early December. While it was interesting to go through the canal on our ship (Brilliance of the Seas), going through on the ferry was a whole different experience.

We tendered off in Gatun Lake, took a bus across to the Pacific side, so we got to see quite a bit, and went through the Pacific locks.

We did the locks by ferry in early December. While it was interesting to go through the canal on our ship (Brilliance of the Seas), going through on the ferry was a whole different experience.

 

We tendered off in Gatun Lake, took a bus across to the Pacific side, so we got to see quite a bit, and went through the Pacific locks.

We are going on the Brilliance Canal cruise in February. Please tell me more about this excursion.

What time did you get off the Brilliance and on to the tender? Where did you go from there to get the bus to the Pacific side? After going through the Pacific Locks, how long did it take you to get back to the ship? Was the ship connection then made at Cristobol Pier?

Was this a RCCL tour or did you book it independently?

We've taken both excursions and while both are excellent I would recommend the boat or ferry excursion thru the Canal first. The train ride is more comfortable but going the length of the Canal by water gives you a real close up view of the activities along the way.

 

We were fortunate to be shadowed by a freighter behind us in our "lane" and a freighter in the parallel "lane" as well. There's nothing quite like having your lock lowered with the ship in the other lane still floating 30' higher above you! For a general view of the Canal and countryside the train is the way to go. For a closeup of the Canal definitely take the boat or ferry excursion.

Raven, Just read your post on the Ferry tour at Panama. Where did you buy the tour-I've heard you can find a company off the ship easily. Any ideas. We'll be there Mar. Did you go to the Pacific side?

Cheryl

Has anyone done this on 2 different Canal cruises: stayed on the ship AND taken an excursion. What are the main differences? What are the pros/cons? What do you recommend for first timers?

We were all decided on staying on the ship for both directions through the Canal - we will be on the Brilliance and it is round trip from Miami so it does not go all the way to the Pacific side. But some of the excursions sound very good. Now we cannot decide what would be the best to do.

We are a family of 4 with 2 teenagers. The train is definitely out - VERY boring for the teens... What about some of the other excursions???

When Summit docked in Colon, we took an air conditoned bus to the Pacific side at 7:15 a.m. (so eat very early), got to see the countryside, a very little of the town of Colon on our way out of it, the continental divide, the Chagras river, & the skyline of Panama City on the way to the dock where we boaded a ferry at Balboa. You can see photos of this boat at Colon2000.com (and descriptions plus time frame of all the tours available, with a short video of each, as well. The actual time on the boat is 4.5 hours. the other 2.5 hours are transporting you to the Pacific and back and boarding).

We sat on the top, open air deck. The only passengers on the boat were from Summit. It was cloudy for much of the day, and it was not hot at all on Nov. 20, 2004. I'd been worried about the heat because it is so close to the Equator. They sold alcohol drinks and tee shirts at the bar, but provided free sodas and mineral water with a sandwich and cookie at lunch time. I had brought my own bottle of water which I sipped before anything was served.Grab a soda as you leave the boat to drink on the bus back to Gamboa where you will get on the same bus with the same guide you had travelling to the Pacific. The guide on the bus, Rena, was totally fluent in English, went to college in New Orleans and Minnesota, and told us alot about Panama. The guide on the boat was also bi-lingual (American parents so he had no accent whatsoever) and knowledgeable about the canal and Panama where he grew up. There was almost constant commentary as we motored the Pacific. We saw and heard so much information that I couldn't begin to divulge it here (not that I can remember it all).

In preparation for this voyage I'd read David McCullough's Path Between the Seas. A condensation of the book in a NOVA (PBS) one hour production was shown on Summit the day before the excursion.

In a small boat you are able to see the walls of the canal, the water being forced into the lock on the floor of the lock and other things you might not see on a big ship. One was really aware of the engineering marvel of it.

For those who wanted to remain on their cruise ship, but wanted a photo of their ship in transit, we noticed that people on a Crystal ship which was in the other lane next to us were holding up large signs of their email addresses so that those of us who were taking photos of them could email them a picture!

We went through the Pacific locks at Pedro Miguel and Mira Flores and then into a lake before transiting the Galliard Cut. We could see the workers present (the canal maintenance is a constant and on-going thing of dredging) with all their equipment. At one point we saw the transcontinental railroad with a speeding train on it. Once through the cut we disembarked at Gamboa. We did not see any town at all (I think the town was there before the canal was built and it was obliterated when the dam was built to make the Gatun Lake). On the drive back to Colon we were ahead of schedule, so our driver took us to the Madden Dam where we stopped for photos. Everytime wildlife was spotted we'd pull over, also (in case you'd missed an excursion in Costa Rica where the same monkeys and sloths were seen, this was a nice opportunity for many people on our bus).

We were back on the ship by 2 p.m.

flashdog,

Thanks for the great information!

I like that idea about the email addresses... Do you know if there is a website that lists which ships will be at the canal when? I would like to be able to contact someone sailing on the same dates on another ship.

We just got back from Carnival Legend, we did the train and thought it was great. From Colon pier we took a short bus ride to the train station, then boarded the train for the 1-hr ride over to the Pacific Side. The Trains were setup as tables of 2 on one side and 4 on the other (the 4 side is better as it is on the canel side of tracks). You can also walk outside on each train and watch the sites from that vantage point as well. On our way to the Pacific the "train girls" served us great Panama coffee (for free) or you could purchase a cold beer for $2. All the cars weer airconditioned and each had a guide that told you about the sites along the way. Once on the Pacific side we boarded buses for a trip over to Miraflores Locks where they have a real nice visitor center and a chance to see the boats go through the locks up close. We then took the bus back to the train and back to Colon. They did serve us a light snack on the train and in the afternoon I bought a few of those Panama Beers! The entire tour took about 6 hrs. It was a great excursion that I am very glad we took. On Carnival it was a bit pricy ($155/pp) but it was an opportunity I could not let go by

We just returned from the Carnival Legend. My in-laws went through the canal on the ferry. It was the highlight of their trip and they said it was worth every penny. It was a very full day and they would recomend it.

Should we take the boat or train excursion through the Canal? We are on the Coral Princess 10/21....not a full transit. Please let me know your pros and cons on each. Thank you.

We're going on the Celebrity Galaxy in April - wonder what you decided and how you felt about your decision.